Lillian Board
Lillian Board at the 1968 Olympics
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Lillian Barbara Board |
| Nationality | British |
| Born | 13 December 1948 Durban, South Africa |
| Died | 26 December 1970 (aged 22) Munich, Germany |
| Height | 5ft 6in (1.68m) |
| Sport | |
| Country | Great Britain |
| Sport | Track and field |
| Event(s) | 400 metres, 800 metres |
| Club | London Olympiades |
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Medal record
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Lillian Barbara Board MBE (13 December 1948 – 26 December 1970) was a British athlete. She won the silver medal in the 400 metres at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, and two gold medals at the 1969 European Championships in Athletics in Athens. Her career was cut short in 1970 when she developed the colorectal cancer that within months would claim her life.
Board was born in Durban on 13 December 1948. Her parents, George and Frances Board, had emigrated from Manchester, England, to South Africa in April 1947, along with their son George Alfred. Growing homesick shortly after the birth of Lillian and her fraternal twin sister, Irene, the family moved back to Manchester in February 1950.
In 1956, the family moved to Ealing, west London, where Lillian and Irene, then aged 7, started studying at Drayton Green School.
In 1960, at the age of 11, Lillian and her sister moved to Grange Secondary Modern Girls' School, also in Ealing and now part of The Ellen Wilkinson School for Girls. It was here in 1961 that Physical Education teacher Sue Gibson (a Middlesex county discus champion) spotted that Lillian, now aged 12, had a special talent for running. She took her to join London Olympiades, the leading all-female athletics club, which had a training base at Alperton, north-west London. Here she competed in relays and 100 and 150 yard sprints.
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